Happy birthday, Switch 2 – a look back at the first year of Nintendo’s next-gen handheld
The Switch 2 is celebrating its first birthday. To mark the occasion, I look back on the past 12 months – and attempt a prediction.
Dear Switch 2,
You’re a great console. Since your launch on 5 June 2025, we’ve already experienced so much together. And now you’re celebrating your first birthday. I’m taking this opportunity for an honest, unfiltered look back at our time together.
Our time together in numbers
Before I share my deepest thoughts and feelings with you, I want to give you some exciting facts about our journey so far. Starting with my playtime. I’ve already spent 650 hours with you – an average of 1.8 hours per day. Much more than I expected.
I’ve also played a lot of different games: 91. Many of them in the first few weeks after launch.
I downloaded so many old Switch 1 games, just to see how much better they ran on your powerful hardware.
That’s how I rediscovered some titles I’d neglected or completely missed during the Switch’s first generation. You’ve given games such as Fire Emblem Engage, Ace Combat 7, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate a second lease of life. And with the new Handheld Mode Boost, they now look better than ever on the go – epic!
That said, I spent most of my time with new Switch 2 releases. My top five:
- Pokémon Pokopia – 80 hours
- Kirby Air Riders – 45 hours
- Donkey Kong Bananza – 45 hours
- Mario Kart World – 40 hours
- Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties – 30 hours
I played these games both at home and on the go. You’re my constant travel companion. Whether I’m on the train to work or on long-haul flights, you’re always in my rucksack. I’m never without you.
Over the past 12 months, we’ve travelled half the world. We’ve been to Germany, Poland, France, Croatia, England, Korea and Japan together. When you’re with me, I feel like I’m carrying a piece of home with me.
Software lineup: you put in the effort, and I appreciate that about you
Your game releases are impressive. While the lineup isn’t as legendary as the Switch 1’s in its first year, it’s hard to beat with hits including The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Splatoon 2, Super Mario Odyssey and Xenoblade Chronicles.
So far, you’ve blessed us with eight exclusive games – not bad. Our reviews of these games have been mostly positive:
- Donkey Kong Bananza – 5/5
- Pokémon Pokopia – 5/5
- Yoshi and the Mysterious Book – 5/5
- Mario Kart World – 4/5
- Kirby Air Riders – 4/5
- Mario Tennis Fever – 4/5
- Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour – 3/5
- Drag X Drive – 2/5
Your exclusive titles average 4 out of 5 stars. Not bad. But you should be ashamed of the complete flop that’s Drag X Drive. The same goes for the Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour. It’s a cool little tech demo, but charging money for it’s outrageous.
Source: Nintendo
While I’m on the subject of complaining, could you please stop bombarding us with Nintendo Switch 2 editions? Look how you’ve spammed us with them over the past few months:
- Super Mario Bros. Wonder – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Meetup in Bellabel Park
- Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition
- Metroid Prime 4: Beyond – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition
- Pokémon Legends: Z-A – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition
- Kirby and the Forgotten Land – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Star-Crossed World
- Super Mario Party Jamboree – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV
- The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition
Some upgrades are great. I’d immediately recommend Metroid Prime 4: Beyond to anyone because of its 4K resolution and mouse controls. However, most of the remasters aren’t worth the money.
And what’s with these ridiculous names? Super Mario Bros. Wonder – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Meetup in Bellabel Park reads like ChatGPT had a glitch.
Source: Nintendo
You breathe new life into old classics
I think it’s great you’re giving us access to GameCube classics with the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack (another silly name). Your predecessor’s great-great-great-grandfather (God, I’m old) is still my favourite Nintendo console. Don’t be jealous – I still can’t resist the charm of that purple lunchbox.
But why are you so stingy with your GameCube games? After a year, you only have ten games in your library – and most of them were there at launch. Months went by without any new additions.
Come on, get a move on! I’d much rather have more retro games in the online subscription than features such as your pseudo-Discord GameChat, which nobody uses anyway.
Aside from GameChat, your operating system has barely changed compared to the Switch 1. That’s boring. It doesn’t suit your otherwise lively personality. Be bold! Give me themes. Give me trophies – I love trophies!
Give me something, but stop being so boring, damn it.
You’re open to everyone
Aside from the exclusive Nintendo titles, I’m impressed by how well you collaborate with third-party developers. You’re a lot more capable than your predecessor, radiating confidence and securing new connections.
In your first year alone, I’ve already played some top-tier third-party hits: Cyberpunk 2077, Star Wars Outlaws, Assassin’s Creed Shadows and Resident Evil Requiem. The fact you can compete with power-hungry monsters such as the PS5 (around 200 watts) with your 10-to-20 watt power consumption is nothing short of dark magic. The Nvidia chip and DLSS are your secret weapons.
Source: Capcom
Back in January, I claimed in an article that: «The age of ‘impossible Switch ports’ is over». Since then, you’ve repeatedly confirmed this with impressive ports.
Keep doing what you’re doing and stay open to everyone. Don’t let the big consoles and overpriced PC handhelds intimidate you.
I forgive you
I can’t talk about your software without mentioning game key cards. You know your fans hate them. I used to hate those blank cartridges with licences too. Now I accept that they’re part of you.
Realistically speaking, your third-party support would be much worse without game key cards. They’re a necessary evil. For example, Naoki Hamaguchi – director of Final Fantasy VII Remake – recently explained that it couldn’t run on a «normal» cartridge. Your internal memory operates roughly twice as fast as your cartridges. This speed’s needed to stream data quickly enough during gameplay.
I’m sorry you can’t escape the shift towards digital games either. But I don’t hold it against you anymore. It is what it is. I forgive you.
I love your hardware
Let’s talk about your hardware. You still look great, and you’re so well made – simple, stylish, compact. Compared to those ugly PC handhelds, you’re a real supermodel.
I think a bit more colour would suit you. Your first Joy-Con colour variation in purple and green’s a joke. Most of the time I can’t even see any colour because the Joy-Cons are attached to you.
Why don’t you give us fully coloured controllers again, like in the Switch 1 days?
Aside from the lack of colour, I really like your new, bigger Joy-Cons. They’re better than the old ones in every way. The magnets… ahhh, I love the magnets. And over the past 12 months, I’ve even grown to love your mouse gimmick. Yes, it took some getting used to before I could us it without getting cramp. But eventually, it clicked. I played the whole of Metroid Prime 4 in mouse mode – and I’ll do the same with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4.
I’m going to ask you something: please make sure more games make meaningful use of your mouse. It’d be a shame if this feature became a barely used gimmick like your camera, which I never touched again after a few Mario Kart World sessions.
Your Pro Controller’s also stood the test of time – at least partially. No other input device feels as high-quality as yours. It fits perfectly in your hand, and the sticks still glide smoothly and silently. A dream. Your HD Rumble motors are also great, even if their potential’s still far too rarely maximised.
I still think it’s a shame you don’t have analogue triggers. In my original review, I praised the digital directional pad. I retract that one year on. It’s rubbish.
Yes, it’s better than the Switch 1 Pro Controller. But the longer I play with it, the more often it registers incorrect inputs in 2D games. This has annoyed me so much over the past few months that I’d deduct a whole star from my Pro Controller rating (4 out of 5).
You can be annoying sometimes when we’re out
I often play on the go. One small detail I appreciate about you is your sturdy stand.
When I’m on a train or plane, I put you on a table with the stand, lean back and play with the Joy-Cons detached. No other handheld offers that level of convenience.
Unfortunately, you often annoy me when we’re out and about. Your display’s a joke. In bright environments, it’s far too dark. In dark settings – you know I like to play games in bed – the poor black levels are noticeable. I also think it’s outrageous that you’re officially allowed to claim to have an HDR-capable display. We both know that’s not true. I’ll never forgive you for not going with an OLED.
Oh, and speaking of the display, I take seriously good care of you. I handle you with kid gloves. And yet, after a year, there are countless scratches on your screen. How is that possible? Do you have a life of your own when I’m not using you? Are you seeing someone else? Or is that stupid dock scratching you? Whatever it is, your sensitivity’s driving me mad.
I find your battery life less annoying than I expected. In my launch review, I piled criticism on the weak battery. In everyday use, however, this shortcoming hasn’t been a problem for me. Yes, you’re no marathon runner, and your OLED predecessor easily outperforms you. But I can generally expect two to three hours of battery life. That’s more than enough for a day of train travel.
And I always carry a powerbank for longer trips just in case. Your second USB port on top means I can even charge you while you’re sitting on a table with your stand. It’s a detail that really improves my gaming experience on the go.
We need to talk about our future
Looking back on our time together, the good memories clearly outweigh the bad. You brought me so much joy in our first year. But I want to be honest. I don’t know how rosy our future’s looking.
Not because you’re getting more expensive – everyone else is too, and it’s not your fault. I also have no doubt that you’ll continue to delight me with top-notch Nintendo titles in the coming years. I’m practically wetting myself with excitement when I think about everything that’s still to come. A new 3D Mario, a new Zelda, Super Smash Bros., and so much more.
But you won’t be the only handheld in my life for much longer. The PlayStation 6 could ruin our relationship.
At the moment, everything points to Sony releasing a home console and a handheld version with the PS6 generation. And that could offer me many of the things that only you’ve been able to offer so far: great exclusive games, plenty of performance, third-party support. Sony will offer even more: a more robust online system, trophies (I love trophies!), analogue triggers and, with a bit of luck, an OLED screen.
This’ll be the first time you’ve faced a serious challenge. Because let’s be honest: even your biggest competitor in the PC handheld market is a commercial joke. You never had to worry about the Steam Deck with its measly five million units sold.
But a portable PS6? You should take that seriously.
Perhaps next year I’ll have to think carefully about whether to pack you in my bag without thinking or take my new PlayStation handheld instead.
In summary, don’t rest on your laurels. I know you’re still doing really well – you’re selling like hotcakes. But think about our future and keep working on yourself. Make yourself more exciting (trophies!) and more colourful. Revamp your display. Give me even more performance and even more battery life. Overwhelm me with Nintendo hits. And, above all, keep surprising me so the burning flame of our handheld love doesn’t go out.
My love of video games was unleashed at the tender age of five by the original Gameboy. Over the years, it's grown in leaps and bounds.
This is a subjective opinion of the editorial team. It doesn't necessarily reflect the position of the company.
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